Cake Batter & Crumbs

Funny Realization

On my desk at work are several photographs of family and friends, including my most favorite picture taken at our wedding. Surely enough, my prized photograph is of the cake cutting event at our reception. I guess when I'm interested in something, I'm REALLY into it. (I just wish the sun would have been in a better placement at the moment, so the lighting would have been more balanced!)

Our cake was a delicious medley of chocolate and vanilla with different flavored buttercreams in between layers. It was so delectable; I wish we still had some. We're nearing our 2 year anniversary though, so it probably wouldn't taste as good as our wedding day. =)

Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate Cake & Chocolate Frosting

My husband's birthday was this past Saturday and is traditional for us, we spent the day at Hershey Park. I can't think of anything better to go with amusement park rides than chocolate! Actually I think chocolate nicely compliments just about anything.

In honor of our day at Hershey, I decided to make some cupcakes using Hershey's baking cocoa. I looked through my Hershey's cookbook that I purchased last time we were there and also did a recipe search on their site. In the end I decided on the Perfectly Chocolate Cake & Chocolate Frosting that was actually listed both in my book and on their website.

This was my second time making a recipe from the Hershey's website and I've been really impressed with each so far. I really think this is probably the best chocolate cake I've ever made from scratch. Sometimes the chocolate cakes can get a little dry, but not this one. The texture is really great, more on the light side, and it has a nice moist crumb. And, as the name suggests, the chocolate flavor is just perfect.

I followed the variation for cupcakes and halved the recipe to get around a dozen cupcakes. The recipe notes that the batter will be thin, and was it ever. It seemed like I was scooping chocolate sauce into my cupcake liners rather than chocolate cake batter. In the end though, it made some awesome cupcakes. I will definitely be using this cake recipe again.

The chocolate icing took the cupcakes to the next level of chocolaty heaven. I am a huge chocolate lover, so these were a perfect combination for me. I can see how some might prefer something different--less chocolaty. I used the recipe suggested on the website and added a little salt to bring out the flavors more.

All in all, these were a huge success, surely satisfying any cravings for chocolate. As for my husband's birthday cake, in his typical fashion, he requested an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen, made his way, with no chocolate crunchies in the middle. He can have his chocolate-less crunchie ice cream cake, but I'll stick with my over-the-top chocolate cupcakes.

Our trip to Hershey Park, was a fun one. Even though the park was insanely crowded, our group had a great time, and it's so true when they say, Hershey is definitely the sweetest place on earth.

HERSHEY'S "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:            

    

• 2 cups  sugar
• 1-3/4 cups  all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup  HERSHEY'S Cocoa
• 1-1/2 teaspoons  baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons  baking soda
• 1 teaspoon  salt
• 2   eggs
• 1 cup  milk
• 1/2 cup  vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons  vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
•    "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING(recipe follows)

   

                

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings.
         
VARIATIONS:
ONE-PAN CAKE: Grease and flour 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Heat oven to 350° F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Frost.

THREE LAYER CAKE: Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost.

BUNDT CAKE: Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack. Cool completely. Frost.

CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes.


"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Huckleberry Cupcakes with Sweet Cream

I was flipping through my mom's copy of Martha Stewart Living magazine a few weeks ago and came across this recipe. The July issue had a lot of really good recipes for summertime desserts, I hounded my mom to get me a copy of a couple of the recipes.


The recipe calls for huckleberries, but notes that you can substitute blueberries. I haven't ever seen huckleberries at our grocery stores here, and since blueberries are in season now and the prices are lower, I used them instead.

Without the cream topping, these cupcakes are really like sweet blueberry/vanilla muffins. The whipped cream topping is just subtly sweet and a nice accompaniment to the cupcake. I tend to like things extra sweet, and I was tempted to add a little extra powdered sugar to make it a really sweet cream. I'm glad I didn't though because the whipped topping doesn't overpower or take away from the cake flavors this way.



These cupcakes will keep for a few days in the refrigerator. Since they have the whipped cream topping, they must be refrigerated. I'd let the cupcakes come to room temperature  before eating though, so the cake is softer.

Thanks, mom for getting me a copy of this recipe... even after I forgot it at your house!


Martha Stewart's Huckleberry Cupcakes with Sweet Cream

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups whole milk, room temperature
2 cups huckleberries, plus more for garnish (substituted blueberries)
2 cups cold heavy cream
3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together flours, baking powder, and salt.

Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, and add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture; beat until combined after each addition. Fold in berries by hand.

Divide batter among cups. Bake until golden brown, around 25 minutes. Let cool.

Beat cream and confectioners' sugar until firm peaks form. Dollop cupcakes with whipped cream, garnish with berries and dust with confectioners' sugar.

German Chocolate Cupcakes …with Coconut Pecan Icing

This weekend I was in the mood again for chocolate cupcakes, but with something a little different for the icing. I debated on making either rocky road or German chocolate, and in the end the rich and gooey coconut pecan icing won out and I decide German chocolate it was.


I had remembered seeing a good recipe for this in my Cake Mix Doctor's Cupcake book. Among other things, the recipe incorporates shavings from a German chocolate sweet bar in the cake mix. In my opinion, this really is what made the cupcakes especially good. You can see little flecks of the chocolate bar inside the cupcake and it gives it a really nice, sweet flavor. It was worth all of the grating I had to do to get the chocolate bar into shavings!

This recipe uses the traditional coconut pecan icing that you always find on German chocolate cake. In fact, I saw the same recipe for it on the inside of my German chocolate bar wrapper.


I've had the coconut pecan icing out of the can before and this icing just doesn't even compare. It's so rich and really easy to make. I was concerned about how it would turn out, but everything went smoothly. The key is to not even try to use this icing until it's cooled. Otherwise it will just drip off of the cupcakes in clumps... delicious clumps, mind you, but difficult when trying to ice a few dozen cupcakes. I learned after the first couple to just wait a while.

I'm keeping these in the refrigerator. The book said they will last a week in the refrigerator and up to 3 days on the counter. The recipe for both the cupcakes and icing can be found at the link below:

German Chocolate Cupcakes & Coconut Pecan Icing

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

For the 4th of July, my  husband, Shannon and I went to my parents' house for an outdoor BBQ. They recently setup a new gazebo and outdoor table and chairs, so even though we had on-and-off showers here in the northeast, we were able to enjoy an outdoor cookout under the gazebo roof.

For the party, I decided to bring ice cream sandwiches using this recipe for Thick, Soft, and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies. You can achieve so many different types of chocolate chip cookies, just by altering certain ingredients like the amount of butter or sugar used. For me, the best kinds of these cookies are the big, thick, and chewy ones.

These cookies turned out perfectly, and thanks to the men in the house, I had to keep a close watch as they were cooling, so they didn't keep disappearing from the cookie racks.

Once they were cool, I scooped a fair amount of vanilla ice cream and squished them together. They quickly started to melt, so I had to snap a few pictures before quickly wrapping them in cellophane wrap and putting them into the freezer.


I made these a few days ahead of our party, and they stayed nicely in the freezer. They were a little messy when unwrapping, but I think that was due to my waiting to take pictures of them instead of immediately wrapping and placing in the freezer.

In an attempt to lighten these up a bit, I used Edy's Light Vanilla Ice Cream, since no one in my family can tell a difference between this and the full fat stuff, even my ultra low-fat food snoopy father.

Here's the recipe for the cookies:

Thick, Soft, and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies      

Cooking time: About 7 minutes per pan

      

Prep time: About 10 minutes

      

Makes: About 18 cookies

      

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

      

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

      

1/4 teaspoon salt

      

1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter or margarine, at room temperature

      

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

      

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

      

1 large egg

      

1 package (6 oz.) or 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

      

1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

      

1. Mix flour, baking soda, and salt.

      

2. Beat butter, sugar, and vanilla with a mixer on medium speed until well blended. Beat in egg, mixing well. Add flour mixture, and beat slowly to incorporate, then beat to blend well. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.

      

3. Drop batter in 2-tablespoon portions about 2 inches apart on baking sheets.

      

4. Bake in a 400° oven until edges of cookies are brown but an area about 1 inch wide in the center is still pale, 6 to 7 minutes. If using 2 pans in 1 oven, switch positions at half-time.

      

5. Let cookies cool on pan about 5 minutes, then transfer to racks with a spatula. Serve warm or cool. Store airtight up to 8 hours, or freeze for longer storage.

      

Per cookie: 160 cal., 46% (73 cal.) from fat; 1.7 g protein; 8.1 g fat (4.8 g sat.); 22 g carbo.; 124 mg sodium; 26 mg chol.

I hope everyone who celebrated, had a terrific 4th!